Barley, hulled or flaked.
Barley is an amazing grain with so many benefits. Most people only seem to think its great in turkey soup but I will give you many reasons to find ways to introduce Barley into you diet at least a couple of times a week.
Mostly we find hulled Barley or pearl Barley on the shelf at the grocers. Hulled is better than pearl as because the husk is removed but not all the beneficial coating that they remove in pearl barley. But now I found out that flaked Barley is another option. You can cook it like oatmeal for breakfast. It cooks in 10 minutes! Whereas hulled Barley you have to soak overnight or for at least a few hours and then it still takes about 60-90 minutes to cook.
Barley has some gluten which we do want to reduce. However it has about 50% less than wheat and the benefits of Barley outway the small amount of gluten present.
Here is an exert from Vaidya RK Mishra's Health Compendium on the benefits of Barley:
"In SVA we know that barley binds toxins through its slimy properties, both in the colon and in the blood. Medical research indicates that barley can regulate blood sugar for up to 10 hours after consumption. In addition, barley has been shown to be cholesterol lowering.....best grain for weight loss and those people with blood sugar problems. Barley is an excellent food for the friendly bacteria, known as yoginis in SVA parlance, in the digestive system and thus helps promote a healthy colon even while the fiber is moving things along."
I recently found a source for organic Barley flakes. It took quite a while to find a local source. Amazon has some but it was to pricey for me. I have been enjoying Barley flake porridge in the morning with raisins and toasted sunflower seeds. I toast the sunflower seeds separately in a cast iron frying pan and then sprinkle them on the porridge. It gives it a nice crunchy texture and toasted flavour. Another way I have been enjoying Barley is as a base for chicken. After cooking the Barley for 60 minutes I spread it in a casserole dish and then layer chicken thighs which I seared in a pan. I sprinkle my spice mix or Mum's Masala ( available from Chandika) and a bit of coconut milk. Bake in the oven for about 1 hour. Delicious. I recently took this to a potluck and it went fast.
Mostly we find hulled Barley or pearl Barley on the shelf at the grocers. Hulled is better than pearl as because the husk is removed but not all the beneficial coating that they remove in pearl barley. But now I found out that flaked Barley is another option. You can cook it like oatmeal for breakfast. It cooks in 10 minutes! Whereas hulled Barley you have to soak overnight or for at least a few hours and then it still takes about 60-90 minutes to cook.
Barley has some gluten which we do want to reduce. However it has about 50% less than wheat and the benefits of Barley outway the small amount of gluten present.
Here is an exert from Vaidya RK Mishra's Health Compendium on the benefits of Barley:
"In SVA we know that barley binds toxins through its slimy properties, both in the colon and in the blood. Medical research indicates that barley can regulate blood sugar for up to 10 hours after consumption. In addition, barley has been shown to be cholesterol lowering.....best grain for weight loss and those people with blood sugar problems. Barley is an excellent food for the friendly bacteria, known as yoginis in SVA parlance, in the digestive system and thus helps promote a healthy colon even while the fiber is moving things along."
I recently found a source for organic Barley flakes. It took quite a while to find a local source. Amazon has some but it was to pricey for me. I have been enjoying Barley flake porridge in the morning with raisins and toasted sunflower seeds. I toast the sunflower seeds separately in a cast iron frying pan and then sprinkle them on the porridge. It gives it a nice crunchy texture and toasted flavour. Another way I have been enjoying Barley is as a base for chicken. After cooking the Barley for 60 minutes I spread it in a casserole dish and then layer chicken thighs which I seared in a pan. I sprinkle my spice mix or Mum's Masala ( available from Chandika) and a bit of coconut milk. Bake in the oven for about 1 hour. Delicious. I recently took this to a potluck and it went fast.
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